Episode 2: Blood and Drugs
by T.M.B
Summary: Tara's back, but Willow and Buffy leave for L.A. in hopes of finding the person who sired the vampire Tara got the heart from. But as soon as they leave, Dawn gets attacked in the night. Can Tara save her?
1. Drugged

**Note from the author:** This is episode two in a series I have started, and therefore a continuation of a building plot. If you would like to read Episode 1: Black Hearted, go to my profile page and click on the link given.

Thank you!

-Tim

* * *

Willow breathed out a long sigh. Tara's arms were around her waist, the two of them lightly covered in soft, crimson bed sheets. She looked into Tara's blue eyes and gently kissed her. "Sex is _always_ better after you save the world."

Tara laughed gently. "You didn't save the world, you saved me."

"You _are_ my world," Willow replied, snuggling closer to Tara's warmth. She wished Buffy had turned down the air conditioning before she'd left to talk with Spike. She let out a small shiver.

Tara squeezed tighter. "I'm so proud of you, Willow." She paused. "You've done so much for me.

"When I heard the gunshots -I wasn't even sure what they were at the time- I was so confused. I s-saw that look on your face. I was so scared."

"Why, baby?"

"Because, it was my fault we weren't together. I left you alone to face your problems…time we could have spent together. All because I wanted you to get control of your magic."

"Well, it worked!" Willow smiled. "Seeing as I have _no_ magic now, I'd say I've got great control."

"I'm sorry you had to do that, Willow," Tara said quietly.

Willow rubbed the sheet with her hands. "Anything for you, baby. I will _always_ come for you."

Tara smiled that devious smile. "I guess this just means you'll have to do what I say from now on, because _I'm_ the one with power now."

"Mmm, yes, ma'am," Willow said smoothly.

Tara pulled Willow on top of her and they kissed, lost in each other's embrace.

* * *

"Spike?" Buffy called, pushing open the gray stone door to the crypt. It grated to a stop, revealing the small room, dimly lit by a few candles.

There was a TV, turned on to some soap opera, and a cushioned, reclining chair in front of it, turned away from her.

"Okay, Spike," she said, voice instantly turning diplomatic, "I'm not going to play games. Tell me who's siring vampires in L.A."

The chair remained resolute.

"Spike!" She said through gritted teeth.

Still nothing.

She walked over to the chair and swung it around.

Clem fell out of it, letting out a startled cry, roused from sleep. "Please! Please don't- oh, it's you. Hey, girl, what you been up to?" He got to his feet.

Buffy, feeling slightly embarrassed by her mistake, replied, "I'm looking for Spike. You know where he is?"

Clem rubbed his chin with one wiggly hand. "I'm pretty sure he went to the demon bar."

Buffy turned and stalked towards the door.

"But, hey! Maybe you could stick around! I made brownies."

"Maybe later," Buffy said over her shoulder, slamming the door behind her.

* * *

Spike gulped down a frosty mug of scarlet blood, licking his lips for every last drop.

"So, how come you decided not to go through with getting "the power"?" queried a slime demon next to Spike. "I thought you wanted the slayer dead."

Spike laughed. "Love makes you do crazy things, mate. Like this one time-"

"Everyone out," commanded an all-too-familiar voice behind him.

Angry whispers rose, but were quickly silenced as they saw who was behind the voice.

Buffy stood in the middle of the room, demons and other creatures heading for the exit.

"Hey now. I don't want any trouble!" defended Spike nervously.

"Then this should be easy," replied Buffy, scowling. "I don't like easy." She charged at Spike, slamming him down onto the counter.

"Bloody hell!" he exclaimed.

"Tell me who's been siring vampires in L.A. and I'll let you live." Spike's face calmed. "Maybe."

"There are thousands of vampires capable of siring, what do you-"

Buffy slammed his head against the marble surface. "Don't play games with me! We had him ID'd. His name was Steven Damar."

A brief flash of recognition shown in Spike's eyes, but then his face became resolute again. "Don't know him."

She slammed him down again. "Tell me!"

"Or what?" he taunted.

She grabbed a wooden spike from her waist, bringing it to a stop above his chest. "Or I'll kill you."

"You would not."

"Try me," she growled.

"Okay! Okay," Spike relinquished. "I don't know much! Only that he did some jobs for Dru and in return, she'd sire him. But that's all I bloody know!"

Glaring at him, she released her grip, spinning on her heels and walking towards the door.

"Yep, she still likes me," he muttered to himself with a grin.

In return, the wooden spike came flying at him. He threw up his hands, the spike impaling both with a bloody spurt.

Buffy walked out the door.

* * *

Willow now stood in front of the stove, making pancakes.

Tara came up behind her, wrapping her arms around Willow's waist.

"Hey, baby," Willow said, leaning back into the embrace. "I don't know why I'm making these. You're way better."

Tara laughed. "It's fun to watch you though."

Willow smiled. "So, where's Dawn?"

"In the living room. She's _really_ glad we're back together."

Willow giggled. "Well, so am I." She turned and kissed Tara. "Is Giles really back in England?"

Tara nodded.

"He was just here! How could he leave so soon?"

"I know, sweety. He did what he had to. His job is still in England; he has to do what they tell him to."

"I guess."

The door slammed open, and Buffy stalked in.

"Didn't go well?" Willow asked.

"Oh, it went great," replied Buffy, walking into the living room.

Willow looked at Tara, raising an eyebrow.

Tara gave her that knowing look.

Buffy returned, holding the crossbow, an axe, and a few stakes.

"Okay, where are we going?" asked Willow, walking over and grabbing a stake.

Buffy snatched the stake back. "_I_ am going to L.A. Apparently Drusilla is the cause of Tara's possession. I'm going to kill her."

"And I'm coming," Willow replied.

"No, you're not. You have no power; I can't risk you getting hurt."

"Buffy, I'm coming. It's personal. I can handle myself." Willow walked over to Tara, giving her a kiss. "Ill be back soon, baby."

Tara nodded, "I know."

Willow stuck a stake in the waist of her jeans and strapped the crossbow on her back. "Let's go."

* * *

Normalcy had returned to the demon bar, and Spike was once again downing a pitcher of blood.

On his right were two vampires, fiercely making out. He turned his head to them. "Careful now, you may draw blood." He laughed as the two of them fell to the floor, hungrily groping each other.

While he was fixated on watching them, a black cloaked figure stopped on his left, leaning over the counter and sprinkling some pinkish powder into the pitcher of swirling blood.

Spike turned back to his drink, pouring himself some more.

He placed it to his lips and poured the cool liquid down his throat.

"Ah, the glorious taste of blood!"

* * *

Dawn yawned. She lay in bed staring at the shadowed ceiling. Tara had gone to bed an hour earlier, but Dawn just couldn't sleep. She was so excited Willow and Tara were back together, and now Willow had to leave! So soon!

She closed her eyes, turning to her side. The pillow was nice and cool. A low sliding sound came from behind her, and a cool breeze brushed her arm. A shadow of a person appeared on the wall, cast by the silvery moonlight.She turned slowly to face the window, heartbeat quickening.

Spike stood silhouetted in the room, teeth glinting sharp and deadly.

"Spike!" she exclaimed. "Wh-what are you-"

He lunged at her, teeth sinking into her neck.


	2. Following Directions

She felt the sharp pain of teeth piercing her jugular. The unmistakable pull as her life was pulled out of her artery, stolen from her heart. Slurping sounds came from below her ear, the sounds of Spike too eager to drink all her blood.

"Help," she cried out, voice sore but still loud enough to be heard throughout the house. "Help!" she yelled again.

The door banged open and Tara charged in, quickly assessing the situation.

She held up her hand, whispering a spell, her palm glowing violet. A purple line outlined Spike, and he was lifted off Dawn who quickly grabbed her neck. With a crash, Spike flew out the window, sent careening off the roof and onto the darkened lawn below. Glass sparkled around him, strewn across the grass.

"Well, just one more thing that needs to be fixed in this house." Tara smiled. "You alright, Dawn?"

Dawn winced as she nodded. "It wasn't that bad. He didn't have enough time to do too much damage…thanks. But, why would Spike do this? I thought he was good."

Tara sighed. "That's what I'm going to find out."

"What?!" Dawn exclaimed, alarmed. "You're going to leave me here alone? After _that_? Where are you going?!"

"I'm going to see Willie."

* * *

Tara stood in front of the demon bar. She took a deep breath. "You can do this. You can do this." She said to herself, trying to instill some confidence. It wasn't working.

She had placed an enchantment on Dawn's room, so that nothing could enter as long as she remained in the room. _Should keep her safe until I get back._

Taking in another steadying breath, she entered the demon bar.

At first, she didn't know where to look. The bar was on her left, tables on her right. There were all kinds of demons and creatures drinking a vast assortment of drinks; some looked friendly, others looked completely hostile.

She walked calmly towards the bar, sidestepping a demon with tentacles for arms and what looked like a monkey face.

She stopped and sat in an empty chair, swiveling it so she was facing the shelves behind the bar, covered in differently colored bottles of the various demon drinks.

Willie stood on her right, briskly rubbing the counter with a wet towel, cleaning up a minor spill. Noticing her watching, he asked, "Can I get you a drink?"

"I'm here for information," Tara said with a smile.

"Well, I'm afraid I can't give you any. See, I keep my customers' business private."

"Hmm, well, I'm friends with Buffy. I could go get her and _she_ could get the info out of you…"

Willie looked nervous.

"…or you could politely tell me what I need to know, and then we go our separate ways."

"O-okay," Willie said quickly. "Just hurry before someone hears us."

"I need to know about Spike. He just showed up at our house and attacked us. Before now, he was fine. What could cause this sudden change?"

Willie leaned in close. "I've seen a black-cloaked figure a few times. I've heard stories. This same thing has happened to two other demons in the past week. I think he's been drugging them…I saw him lean over Spike's drink…but my angle wasn't so good, so I couldn't see what he did."

Tara nodded. "So…what kind of demon is he?"

"Well, I haven't yet seen what he looks like under that cloak…but I hear he's a Ferrildi demon named Sagar. These Ferrildi demons…not so nice. Now, I don't know what kind of drugs he used, but I here they can secrete some type of mind-controlling liquid. If he'd dried this stuff and placed it in these guys' drinks…instant mind-control I'm guessing. Now, I know it's not solid evidence, but it's all I got! Now please, let me get back to work."

Tara nodded, placing a five on the counter. "Thanks."

She turned to leave, but he grabbed her arm.

"One more thing," he said, still whispering. "I hear he's taken up a spot downtown. It's an abandoned building made of red bricks…just go down an alley across from the jewelry store. Don't know if this is true…but if you're looking for him, it's worth a try."

She smiled again and left the store.

* * *

Tara followed Willie's somewhat accurate directions. It turned out there was no alley across from the jewelry store, but she quickly located one not too far from that location, and entered into its narrow, shadowed depths.

The sky was dimly lit by stars above, and barely any light entered into the alleyway, so she had a hard time not stumbling over bits of strewn garbage. She heard a squeak as a rat scampered away from her feet, and she instantly thought of Amy. _I wonder what she's up to now._

She could faintly make out a door coming up on her left, and as she approached it, she could make out the outlines of rectangular bricks, dimly colored mahogany. This was the place.

There was no doorknob, so she tried pushing it, and it instantly gave way, scraping open with a loud metallic squeal. Well, if they didn't know she was there now, they'd be deaf.

She quickly said a spell, an orb of pulsing, white light appearing in front of her. It bobbed slowly up and down, casting sufficient light in the building so she could see it was completely empty.

There were a few metal beams leaning precariously on a ledge above her, more scattered across the floor along with other debris. But, no demons.

She quickly walked up the metal stairs to the second floor, coming to the same conclusion. This floor looked more used, as to the sleeping bags on the floor, so Willie must have been right. But, where were they now?

She walked back downstairs and closed the door behind her. The light orb burst in a staccato flash as she ended the spell and walked down the alley.

* * *

Dawn groaned. She was stuck in her room with no TV and nothing to do. Tara expected her to just sit here? Yea right.

Dawn got up from her bed, lifting one leg gingerly through the broken window. She leaned out, stepped through, and stopped on the shingles. Then she jumped onto the soft grass with a thud, landing solidly on her feet. She'd had plenty of practice doing this.

She brushed herself off to make sure she looked clean, and looked up.

She gasped. A cloaked figure stood in front of her, three people behind him. One of those people was Spike.

"Wh- what are you doing here?" She asked nervously.

"Now, now, little girl. Don't you know you're not supposed to talk to strangers?" The cloaked figure swung an arm, hitting her over the head and knocking her unconscious.


	3. Saving Dawn

Voices. Barely discernible voices.

"We have to get this portal open soon, sir."

Who was that? What were they talking about?

"The ritual can only be completed if she is awake. We have no choice." A second voice.

Ritual?

Dawn blinked her eyes slowly open. She was in the middle of a vast, empty room. It looked like the building had suffered some sort of disaster in its lifetime, and someone had forgotten to finish the repairs.

She tried to move her arms, soon realizing they were tied above her head to a metal beam that hung suspended in the air by nothing she could distinguish. Her feet were free to move, though that didn't help her problem any.

"Master, she's awake." The owner of the voice was a green-skinned, scaly demon with a horn in the middle of his head.

The cloaked figure stepped into her field of vision, hands clasped behind his back in a menacing fashion. "Yes. I guess she is."

Dawn looked down. She didn't like not knowing who was under that cloak.

She realized that beneath her was a pentagram. _Not good._ "What do you want with me?" She could hear desperation in her voice.

A sinister cackle came from inside the hood. "Your blood."

* * *

"Dawn?" Tara said, opening the door to Dawn's bedroom. The first thing she saw was the open window. "Oh, no.

"Okay, okay. What do I do? God, I need Willow! She'd know. Okay…I have to find her. Locator spell….I'll use a locator spell."

She grabbed a shirt from Dawn's closet and ran down the hall and into her room, rummaging through drawers for the needed items. She threw them next to her as she kneeled on the floor, beginning the ritual.

She sprinkled some burgundy powder onto the shirt, striking a match and tossing it onto the powder. "Goddess of Night, show me the way! Guide me to the essence of her being." The powder began to spark, each granule separating and spreading to form an image. They collected in patterns, creating a rough but accurate representation of a map of Sunnydale. A few glowing specks of powder gathered in a square that symbolized a building downtown.

She soon realized the building was the very same one she had just visited. "Oh God, I have to hurry!"

* * *

"You're not going to get away with this!" Dawn shouted at them.

The cloaked figure held a silver dagger in his hand, gently caressing the tip with his index finger. "And why won't we?"

"B-because! Tara's coming. She'll save me."

The green-skinned demon and a slimy demon smiled. The cloaked figure turned to them. "Would you two please go and intercept this Tara whom our captive was so gracious as to inform us about?"

They were out the door before he finished the sentence.

"No one to save you now," came a voice from behind her.

She strained to look, but couldn't see past her arms.

"The little sis, eh? I wonder if your sister's taught you any tricks in bed."

"Spike," she growled.

"The one and bloody only."

* * *

Tara entered the dark alley, silence instantly surrounding her. It was like a completely different world from the cheerily lit street behind her.

She breathed in slow deep breaths, preparing herself for what she might find. A soft shuffle came from ahead of her, but she couldn't make out anything in the dark.

She clicked on her flashlight, thankful that she'd decided to bring one this time around. The alley ahead was brightly illuminated, and she could see the door about ten yards away.

She heard another shuffle behind her, and spun around to face a demon with slime dripping off its skin.

_There's no time for this!_ "Bind!" she shouted, thrusting out her arm. A green glob of liquid splashed onto the demon, circling his waist and temporarily paralyzing him.

"Well, that was easy," she admitted, proud of herself.

"Not for long."

_Behind me._ Her instincts told her to duck, but she wasn't quick enough. She was hurled forward, sprawling on the alley floor and sliding a few feet.

Her arms and legs burned from newly acquired scratches, but she forced the pain into the back of her mind and stood up.

A green-skinned demon advanced, but she quickly repeated the bind spell and had him taken care of. "It's hard not to think that you guys weren't prepared," she said sarcastically. She could feel the magic coursing through her veins, understanding why Willow enjoyed the rush.

Understanding why it was so addictive.

_And I made her deal with it on her own…_

She shook her head, getting rid of her thoughts. _I have to save Dawn._

The door was a few feet away, so she crossed the distance, opened the door, and walked in.

Dawn hung suspended in front of the stairs, feet a few inches off the ground.

And Spike had his teeth once again in her neck.

"Dawn!" Tara called, unsure what to do. _Do I kill Spike? I'm out of binding powder…what do I do?_

Spike lifted his head up, a ring of blood around his lips and dripping down his chin. "Well, if it isn't the girl-humper."

_Yea, I think I'll kill him._

She ran forward, grabbing a metal bar on the way.

Spike charged as well.

* * *

Dawn's eyes were blurry. She could hear fighting, but couldn't see what was going on. She felt a dull pressure on her neck, unable to make out what was causing it. Blackness took over.

Blood pumped slowly from the thin holes in her neck, dripping onto the pentagram on the floor.

Sparks formed on the staircase behind Dawn, and a glittering portal appeared.


	4. Sacrifice

Tara's metal bar smashed into Spike's with a loud, metallic clang. Where he'd gotten it from, she hadn't seen; why he was using one, she didn't know. _'The drugs must have muddled his mind,' _she thought as she magically stopped Spike's baton in the air, ending its trajectory of colliding with her skull.

She knew her limits for using magic, knew which spells not to use. But, if she continued on like this she'd get too close to what she'd felt outside. _Those_ had been dark spells; necessary, but dark. _'I need to stop this…I need Willow.'_ As she fought Spike, she realized how little time she'd had with Willow before they were once again inevitably separated. She needed her Willow tree by her side to feel complete.

"So, you've come to save the annoying brat. Well, blondie, I'm sorry to say it's too late for her."

She felt a surge of energy from his taunts, the maternal instinct for Dawn taking over. Bursts of adrenaline-powered blows soon had Spike on the floor, weapon skidding on the cement away from him.

"You think you've bloody beat me, haven't you?"

Tara, ignoring him, moved to step over Spike to get to Dawn. Something hit her in the back of the head and she collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

* * *

Spike looked up into the darkness that was the Ferrildi demon's shadowed face.

"Time is almost up! Soon there will be no closing the portal. My reign on this earth will begin!" Sagar let out a cackle.

A blinding light exploded in Spike's eyes and he grabbed his head, body convulsing in agony. _'This is worse than when I attack a human and the bloody chip fries my brain!'_ That brought a realization. He _had_ fought a human: Tara. Why had he fought her?

Another explosion of light, his body rocking on the cement. Then he remembered: the portal, Dawn, Tara, the Ferrildi demon… _'I bit Dawn! No wonder my mind is going on self-destruct mode!'_

He already knew what had to be done. Knew from proof; heck it had already been done twice. '_It's what Buffy would want me to do.'_

_'Oh, who sodding cares about that twit? All she is is trouble. A great big blonde sack of trouble.'_

_'Actually, she's quite petite…her small, narrow waist…'_

"Oh bugger," he said aloud.

"What?" queried Sagar, hood tilting downwards in a vague form of acknowledgement.

Spike stood up. "Oh nothing, it's just," he grabbed the demon's head; "I very much don't like you."

_CRACK!_

Just like that, the Ferrildi demon fell dead to the floor.

Spike walked over to the flashing portal, sparks bursting within the swirling lavender depths.

"I hate this world. It just ain't bloody fair."

Then he stepped into the magical mass, disintegrating into violet particles.

The portal closed with a buzz and Tara awoke.

* * *

She quickly assessed the situation. "No portal: check. Demon," she kicked its head and it rolled on the broken neck, "dead: check. Spike: gone. But, whe-"

Then all at once, it hit her. Spike sacrificed himself. To save the world. _Spike._

Because he had drunk Dawn's blood, he had her blood inside him and was therefore able to close the portal, releasing his trapped soul to go down the final paths of destiny.

She heard a cough, and Tara focused onto the still suspended form of Dawn. Using magic, she loosened the bonds and laid Dawn on the ground. Once again, she brushed something dark, and she cringed.

Dawn's face was only slightly pale; there was only a small puddle of blood on the floor. It would be safe to take Dawn home now.

Thankfully, the teenager wasn't too heavy, and with a little assistance from magic, Tara carried her home.

* * *

Tara looked around the room. Xander and Anya sat next to each other on the couch. They all held mixed feelings about Spike's sacrifice.

"Well, I never liked him, so I say good riddance," Xander said sourly.

"How can you say that?" asked Anya. "He gave up his life to save Dawn, at least show some respect." She wasn't crying, but her voice did quaver.

Tara wasn't sure what to feel. She hadn't really known Spike very well. He had given up his life…but she felt neither hate nor love towards him. She was indifferent. It was sad he'd given up his life….but hadn't he done that already? He was already dead, so nothing really changed…

The door burst open, and Buffy walked in, scowling. Willow trailed close behind.

"I told you already, it's not your fault she got away! I mean, who even knows where she is now!" Willow sounded exasperated, and she gave a little wave and smile to Tara as she followed Buffy into the kitchen.

Buffy grabbed a water from the fridge. "I know, but…that bitch! She _kissed_ Angel. HOW COULD SHE KISS ANGEL?"

"Well…he _was_ sleeping, so at least he didn't kiss back. That would have been all bad and stuff…"

"Not helping, Will."

"I know, it's just…there's nothing we can do. Drusilla will come back eventually, and we'll fight her like always. It's just the way things go. When you live on a Hellmouth…you kinda get used to demony things coming back again….and again."

"I guess you're right…" She looked up as Tara walked in. "Hey Tara! Hold down the fort while we were gone? I'm sure nothing unusual -and when I say unusual, I mean totally usual- happened?"

"Well, actually….it's a long story. It can wait."

"Come on, baby, tell us!" laughed Willow, embracing Tara from behind.

"Spike attacked Dawn." _'Okay, not how I had planned to start out this conversation.'_

"He _what?!_ I'll kill him!" exclaimed Buffy, grabbing her coat and heading towards the back door.

"Th-there's more. He'd been drugged…along with a couple other demons. They captured Dawn…th-they were going to use her blood to open another portal to hell."

Willow gasped behind her.

"I w-went to save her, and had to fight Spike…he had bit her."

Buffy growled.

She didn't want to say the next part…wanted to delay the inevitable. She knew Spike and Buffy had had a relationship…however unusual it was. "Spike's dead. He sacrificed himself to close the portal."

Shock came over Buffy's face. "Well, I guess that saves me the trouble of killing him."

"You…you're not s-sad?" Tara stuttered, nervous.

"Why would I be? One less demon in Sunnydale always makes my day." Buffy jogged out of the room and up the stairs.

* * *

Dawn awoke. She heard crying. Throwing the covers off of herself, she stepped onto the carpet, creeping quietly towards the door. She opened it slowly, peering down the hall. The weeping was coming from Buffy's room. "What is she crying about?" Dawn whispered to herself. She walked down the hall and opened Buffy's door.

Her sister sat collapsed on the floor, rocking with sobs. She ran to her sister's side, hugging her. "Buffy…what's wrong?"

Her sister continued to cry.

"Is…is it about me? Are you crying because I almost died?"

Buffy sniffed through a sob. "Spike. Why'd Spike die?"

Dawn let go, standing up. "Of course. Why would you care about me? I'm just your stupid sister!"

Buffy wrenched out a moan. "Of course I care about you Dawn. But I loved Spike…"

"And you don't love me. I get it. I should have known. The only one who loved me was mom, and she died!" Dawn screamed, tears streaming down her cheek.

"Shut_ up!_" Buffy yelled at her. "Why are you always such a brat? Life isn't always all about you Dawn."

"Of course not, it's never about me. All you care about are the guys you're doing!"

"Get out!" Buffy screamed.

Dawn let out a screech, then stormed out of the room.

_Why? Why would Spike save her? He saved her…and killed me._

She laid down on the floor, curled her knees up to her chest, and cried herself to sleep.

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**Note from the author:** I fixed a typo, haha. Episode 3 will be up sometime, hope you stick around!


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